Cheryl Cole

Cheryl Cole

Per Order has revealed that is was manager Will.I.Am who encouraged her to launch a solo career.
The 28-year old claims she was reluctant to take a break from Girls Aloud and halt plans to start a family with then husband Ashley Cole, but Will insisted she should strike out on her own.
Speaking of the Black Eyed Peas star's involvement with her solo career, Chezza told Pop Justice: "It was actually him that convinced me to do a solo record. I never would have done a solo record without him.

"At the time, I would have had a family. At the time I was still married! But it was actually Will saying to us, 'You know you're going to do a solo record, right?', and I was saying, 'I don't want to, not yet'.
"And he was like, 'I think you should. You need to'. He said, 'I'm excited, I want to be involved with it'. So he was involved from day one. I recorded my first ever solo song ['Heartbreaker'] with Will."
Cheryl went on to add that record label Universal were reluctant to sign her at first, stating: "I think the label were a bit dubious at the time when Will suggested it.
"I think they were like, 'Statistically it doesn't work'. I was married, I was sorted! It was Will who said, 'Come in and write'. And the first thing I wrote was Heaven."
The Call My Name singer has also admitted that Will is still heavily involved when it comes to her career, claiming he even tried to design the artwork for her forthcoming LP, A Million Lights.